


A Better Explanation

by mrsfizzle



Category: Arrow (TV 2012)
Genre: Fix-It of Sorts, Gen, Some Humor, Violence, how it should have ended
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-07
Updated: 2020-05-07
Packaged: 2021-03-03 04:22:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 470
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24058924
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mrsfizzle/pseuds/mrsfizzle
Summary: Takes place during 2x15, The Promise. Ivo blames Oliver for Shado's death while Slade listens, constructing a very false narrative. This is an alternate ending to that scene. Very brief violence.
Comments: 2
Kudos: 14





	A Better Explanation

**Author's Note:**

> My take on how things could have gone differently if . . . well, frankly, if Oliver had been thinking, like, at all.

"It's harder than it looks, isn't it? Killing an unarmed man." Ivo lay back on the floor, panting, cornered.

Oliver's fingers clenched harder against the arrow in his hand, keeping the bowstring pulled back, forcing himself not to tremble. He didn't want to admit that Ivo was right. He didn't want to kill—he'd sworn to change. But this time, he didn't have a choice.

"It seemed pretty easy when you murdered Shado." His voice sounded more confident than he felt—and it was barely more than a whisper, breaking on her name.

"I didn't murder her, Oliver."

"Ivo, you shot her in the head!" That came out as a shout. He was losing his control.

"I gave you a choice! You chose Sara."

He had given Oliver a choice, but Oliver had refused to choose. He'd frozen when Ivo tried to demand him to.

"You blame me, but that's because you can't face your own guilt."

Guilt that had paralyzed him. He couldn't save them both. He'd wanted to—Shado's face had haunted him for years.

"I loaded the bullets, yes. I pulled the trigger. But you . . . you aimed the gun. And you hold yourself responsible. Don't you?"

Oliver blinked, his grip on the arrow loosening just slightly. So many people had told him that Shado's death wasn't his fault, but only now did he see the ridiculousness of the whole situation. "Ivo . . . that's not even close to what happened."

"What?"

"I didn't choose. You started counting down, you pointed your gun at Sara then Shado, then back at Sara. I jumped in front of the gun as you were about to shoot, and you shot Shado."

Ivo rubbed his forehead. "You jumped in front of Sara. That was your choice."

"Your gun happened to be pointed at Sara when your countdown ended. I didn't choose anything."

"Is that what you tell yourself? So you can sleep at night? It's your fault that Shado is dead, Oliver, and you know it. I can see the guilt in your eyes."

"If I'm at fault for anything, it's for not killing you sooner."

A loud cry behind Oliver startled him, and he held tighter onto the arrow rather than letting it fly. Slade ran past him, apparently having been listening from behind, and sliced a blade through Ivo's throat.

Ivo fell limp, his blood pooling on the cluttered floor beside him.

Slade turned back to face Oliver. "Just saving you from making that same mistake again," he said.

Oliver swallowed hard, lowering the bow but keeping the arrow in his hand. He was torn between apologies and gratitude, fear and accusation.

"Don't thank me or anything." Slade wiped the blood from his blade and placed it back in its sheath, then stalked back out the way he came in.

The End


End file.
